Overview

India is not only an incredible, unique country and civilisation, it’s also a mind-boggling potpourri of sights, sounds, colours and experiences, as well as a culture-shock of astonishing contrasts. From the flawless grandeur of the Taj Mahal, to the mighty fortresses of Rajasthan and from the reminders of past glories of the Raj in Delhi to the teeming markets of Jaipur, our India tour encompasses the very best that Northern India has to offer and you will return home with some truly amazing memories.

What's included

The price of this holiday is per person, based on two people sharing a twin room. Single rooms are subject to availability at the relevant supplement (date dependant) Price includes thirteen nights’ accommodation in three, four or five-star hotels, with breakfast and seven meals, scheduled flights to/from Delhi, all transfers, all local accommodation taxes, all flight taxes, all touring as mentioned, all local transport by train or coach as described, hotel porterage of one item of luggage per person and the services of an experienced Riviera Travel tour manager.

Included excursions are guided tours of New and Old Delhi, Agra and the Taj Mahal, Fatehpur Sikri, two game drives in Ranthambore, Jaipur city tour and a visit to the Amber Fort.

Visa not included.

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Departure dates (10 night stays available)

from
£1,489pp

Apr 25, 2019

Nov 28, 2019

Departures from

London Heathrow Airport

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* To see what is included in the price, see what's included below. ** Calls to 03 numbers cost no more than calls to geographic numbers (01 or 02) and are included in inclusive minutes and discount schemes in the same way.

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A wonderful tour of northern India’s ‘Golden Triangle’

See the breathtaking Taj Mahal bathed in soft morning light, gazing in awe at the simple purity of its white marble and the exquisite craftsmanship of its inlay work

City tours of both Old and New Delhi seeing all the major sights

Enjoy a guided tour of the 400-year-old deserted Moghul city of Fatehpur Sikri

Driving safari in Ranthambore National Park, the best place in India to spot the elusive tigers

Explore the ‘Pink City’ of Jaipur, capital of the desert kingdom of Rajasthan with a guided city tour

Marvel at the extraordinary location and beauty of Amber Fort, home of one of India’s most powerful maharajas

Stay in an original Rajasthani fort, converted into a stunning Heritage Hotel

Services of our experienced tour manager

Hand-picked accommodation rated three to five-stars, including all local taxes, with breakfast and seven meals included

Return travel from the UK with premium economy upgrades available at a supplement plus transfers to and from the hotel included

Selected departures up to November 2018 and January to November 2019

Accommodation

4* Hilton Jaipur - Jaipur

The brand-new four-star Hilton Jaipur is well located close to the centre of Jaipur. There is an outdoor pool, fitness room, lobby bar, as well as a buffet restaurant and speciality Indian restaurant with open kitchen. The 114 beautifully-furnished air-conditioned rooms all have bath, shower, hairdryer, minibar, safe, iron/board, cable TV, tea/coffee-maker and wifi (at extra charge).Swimming pools in India: most outside pools are not heated and may not be usable in the winter months.

4* Oberoi Trident Hotel - Agra

The four-star Oberoi Trident Hotel is located in quiet surroundings, near to the Taj Mahal. Managed by the famed Oberoi group, this low-rise modern hotel is surrounded by beautiful gardens with water features and a swimming pool. The hotel grows all its own vegetables and the contemporary-style restaurant offers both buffets and a la carte Indian and continental cuisine, as well as popular wood-fired pizza oven. There is also a small lobby bar and fitness room. All 137 comfortable rooms overlook the Mogul-style gardens or pool and are air-conditioned, with en-suite bathroom, hairdryer, minibar, satellite TV, safe, wireless internet (extra charge) and tea/coffee-maker.Swimming pools in India: most outside pools are not heated and may not be usable in the winter months.

3* Ranthambore Regency - Sawai Madhopur

The three-star Ranthambore Regency Hotel is a charming family-run, low-rise hotel located close to the entrance of the National Park. Built around lush, well-tended gardens with a small pool and plenty of quiet shady spots to relax in, this is one of our clients’ favourite hotels for its low-key informal atmosphere and personal service. There is also a large lounge with bar and a small shop. All guests are on full board basis and the hotel’s buffet restaurant offers a wide selection of (mild!) regional Indian dishes and western options. All 42 rooms are spacious and air-conditioned, with en-suite bathroom, hairdryer, cable TV, wireless internet (extra charge), mini-fridge, tea/coffee-maker and look out into the gardens.Swimming pools in India: most outside pools are not heated and may not be usable in the winter months.

Heritage Alsisar Mahal - Alsisar

The heritage-class Alsisar Mahal is located by the village of Alsisar in the Shekhawati region of Rajasthan. You are really in the middle of rural India here and a stay at this charming property gives you an insight into the India of yesteryear. The hotel can be described as a half-palace, half-castle property, entered through ancient, heavy wooden doors which lead into a wide courtyard encircled by domed roofs and overhanging balconies. There is an open-air pool, spa, traditional bar, billiard room and restaurant. All the 51 air-conditioned rooms are different in style and size, many with antiques and extra large marble bathrooms. In keeping with the style of the property there are no TVs. Swimming pools in India: most outside pools are not heated and may not be usable in the winter months.

5* Taj Diplomatic Enclave - New Delhi

The five-star deluxe Taj Diplomatic Enclave Hotel (previously named the Taj Palace Hotel) is located in the tree-lined, Diplomatic Enclave of New Delhi. As soon as you step into its cool white marble lobby, you know you have arrived somewhere exceptional! There are several dining options: the Kafe Fontana is open all day and offers continental, middle-eastern and Indian cuisine, whilst the Blue Ginger is the city’s best Vietnamese restaurant. The Masala Art specialises in contemporary Indian cuisine with a uniquely interactive show kitchen, and the Orient Express is a more formal dining experience in a replica carriage of the famous train, with an emphasis on French cuisine. There is also a stylish cocktail bar and a popular Tea Lounge serving a variety of teas & coffees with light snacks and desserts throughout the day and liqueurs in the evenings. The open-air pool is surrounded by a spacious sun terrace and a putting green, and there’s a fitness centre, a beauty salon and spa with an extensive range of treatments. All 402 beautifully appointed rooms are air-conditioned, with luxury en-suite bathroom with bathrobes & hairdryer, flat-screen satellite TV & DVD, wireless internet (extra charge), writing desk, safe, minibar, tea/coffee-maker and city/pool views.Swimming pools in India: most outside pools are not heated and may not be usable in the winter months.

Itinerary

1

Airport check-in for your overnight flight to Delhi.

2

On arrival, we transfer to the five-star Taj Diplomatic Enclave (previously named the Taj Palace) for one night. After a short rest we commence our guided tour of New Delhi. The city centre, designed by Sir Edwin Lutyens in 1911, is bisected by wide, tree-lined avenues, a hub which clearly reflects the Raj legacy and home to the former Viceroy’s Palace, now the Presidential Palace. Heading down the imposing Rajpath, we pass India Gate and the Parliament building. We’ll visit some of Delhi’s older monuments, including the Qutub Minaret, started in 1199, which is the tallest stone built tower in India. Nearby is Humayun’s tomb, an outstanding example of Moghul architecture and the first mausoleum of its type, pre-dating the more widely known Taj Mahal by nearly a century. A buffet dinner is included tonight.

3

This morning we continue our city tour, first visiting Old Delhi, starting with the Raj Ghat, a fittingly simple memorial to Mahatma Gandhi. We continue past the imposing walls and battlements of the great Red Fort before visiting the Jama Masjid, one of Asia’s largest mosques. We leave Delhi in the afternoon for our drive to Agra, arriving at our four-star Oberoi Trident hotel, in the late afternoon.

4

We rise early to catch the sun rising over the Taj Mahal. In the soft morning light, as the mist rises from the Yamuna River behind it, the Taj Mahal seems to float, mirage-like, above the surrounding landscape. A combination of extraordinary beauty, symmetry and history makes this wonder of the world one of the most amazing monuments on the planet and you will have plenty of time to admire it from all angles. Moving on, we continue our tour with a visit to the vast red sandstone Agra Fort. Completed in 1573, it was the headquarters of the Moghul Empire, boasting vast size and opulence, its buildings make it more of a walled palace than a fort. In the evening you have the option of completing a wonderful day with another visit to the Taj Mahal, to witness the shrine at sunset.

5

Leaving Agra this morning we continue towards the ancient abandoned city of Fatehpur Sikri, built in 1571, as Emperor Akbar’s imperial capital. Although it was mysteriously abandoned just 15 years later, it remains in a remarkable state of preservation, with numerus palaces, wide courtyards and beautiful carvings.
Just 15 kilometres away is the Bagh Bharatpur, a luxury Heritage Hotel in Bharatpur where we stop for lunch before going on to the railway station to catch the Shatabdi Express for our comfortable two and a half hour journey to Ranthambore National Park.
Originally the private hunting preserve of Maharajahs, its 400 square kilometres of forested rolling hills, valleys and lakes form a unique ecosystem. Started in 1973, India’s famous Tiger Project was created to protect the country’s tiger population. Despite many difficulties, the tigers of Ranthambore have survived and numbers have stabilised.
Our hotel for the next two nights is the comfortable family-run three-star Ranthambore Regency on full board basis.

6

An early start this morning is worth the sacrifice as we head out to the park for our safari using specially built, 20-person, open-top four wheel drive vehicles known as ‘canters’. After many years of conservation, Ranthambore is now the best place to spot tigers in India, but the reserve is about more than tigers – over 300 bird species have been counted including impressive crested eagles, painted stork and wild peacocks. The park’s residents also include large numbers of sambars, the largest Asian antelope, as well as marsh crocodiles, wild boar and rare sloth bears and leopards. Look out for the playful troop of black-faced langur monkeys near the main entrance gate.
We return to our hotel in the late morning, with time to relax before and after lunch. In the afternoon we take our second trip into the park for another chance to spot the elusive tigers. Dinner is included this evening.

7

Leaving Ranthambore after breakfast we head north to the ‘Pink City’ of Jaipur. Our afternoon tour will cover all the major highlights of this ancient city. The famous Hawa Mahal, known as the Palace of Winds, is one of our first stops before we continue to the Astronomical Observatory constructed in 1726 and on to the City Palace, still home to the present Maharajah of Jaipur, where we’ll view collections of costumes, carpets, paintings and the impressive armoury. Our hotel for the next two nights is the new four-star Hilton Jaipur.

8

This morning another highlight, on a tour of highlights: you’ll visit the immense Amber Fort, located in the hills just a short drive out of Jaipur. Sampling all the most fascinating sights, our guided tour includes the sections reserved for the Maharajah’s wives and concubines as well as the remarkable hall of mirrors, with tiny delicate convex mirrors embedded like a mosaic in the walls and ceilings.

9

After breakfast, we bid goodbye to Jaipur and head north, deeper into the interior of rural Rajasthan. We pass numerous small villages and towns on our way to the Sekhawati region of the state and the village of Alsisar. This was once part of India’s Silk Road and over the years the merchants here grew very rich, building a large number of luxurious mansions known as ‘havelis’, to display their wealth through the magnificence of their frescoed walls.
Although most of these have now been abandoned, the imposing and luxurious residence of the local kings has been lovingly restored into an amazing Heritage Hotel, the Alsisar Mahal, where we stay for the night with a buffet dinner. A maze of winding corridors, cool courtyards and arched colonnades, lead to the charming rooms, all different, but most are spacious and some with four-poster double beds. Rooms are air-conditioned, with bath or shower, but no TV.
In the afternoon we take a guided walk through the village to explore the best examples of the havelis that lie just outside the walls of the Alsisar Mahal. Dinner is included tonight.

10

After breakfast we head back to Delhi and the last night of our tour, at the Taj Diplomatic Enclave. Dinner is included this evening.

11

In the morning we will transfer to the airport for our flight home, arriving back in the UK to reflect on a once-in-a-lifetime tour.

Gallery

Tour provided by Riviera Travel

Riviera Travel has been providing luxury escorted tours for more than 34 years. Voted Which? Travel Brand of the Year in 2017. Travellers are delighted with the diversity of their tours, the professionalism and knowledge of the local guides, and the value for money Riviera Travel delivers. Ninety-seven per cent of travellers book again. Solo travellers are also excellently catered for, with trips around the word. This holiday is provided by, and your resulting contract and booking conditions will be with, Riviera Travel (registered in England no 1869298), ABTA V4744, ATOL 3430 protected, a company wholly independent of Telegraph Media Group Limited.